15 Best Seinen Anime Worth Watching

If you’re not familiar with the term “seinen”, it refers to a Japanese manga genre aimed at older male readers. Traditionally, these manga are published in monthly magazines and are usually serialized. This is in contrast to shōnen manga, which is aimed at younger male readers and is typically published in weekly magazines.

Due to the difference in publication formats and demographic for these two genres, seinen manga tends to be more character-driven. This allows readers to get a stronger sense of empathy with the characters and their motives as they go through different challenges. It also means that the narratives can be longer and less predictable, allowing for a deeper exploration of their themes. While shōnen manga usually has a cast of many characters, seinen manga tends to have only a few characters in focus, with the other minor characters woven into thematic arcs that build towards the main plot.

The best seinen anime also tend to have a lot of action and drama. Sometimes these elements are intertwined with psychological and philosophical elements, but some works have a more straightforward approach to storytelling. They keep the suspense ratcheted up by alternating between action segments and slower-paced characters segments that develop the narrative further.

A lot of seinen anime are based on manga, light novels, and visual novels. They don’t always follow the same plot, but they do keep the key elements that make the source material so special.

Ready to get into seinen anime but don’t know where to start? Our list of the best seinen anime that should help you out.